New Myths, at the Bokeh Gallery at Monorchid shares recent digitally-manipulated images by artist Rembrandt Quiballo. According to his artist statement, this series extracts “mass produced images” from “mass media” that are manipulated and then layered to attempt to create “new myths.”

The result is a series of small, colorful prints that are displayed in simple white mattes and frames amongst the clatter of condo development and construction outside. Titles like Shallow Waters and Digital Tears provide very little as an insight into the content of the original image or newly-created one. The original image is so obscured,it is possible that the work’s title is alluding to it. It is also hard to make out what component of “mass media” or “mass produced images” are being utilized since this is not only a broad subject but also two separate things. The images could be stills from movies or music videos, which are technically part of mass media but aren’t necessarily mass-produced. Or, they could be mass-produced images that we are all familiar with like the falling twin towers, Hurricane Katrina or a Super Bowl win. Quiballo states that he is attempting to create “new myths” but a myth is a complex story that would require more than non-descript hints of pixels and color. If he is creating “new myths,” it suggests that he considers the images he’s using as existing “myths” and not just mass media.

The result is a series of small, colorful prints that are displayed in simple white mattes and frames amongst the clatter of condo development and construction outside. Titles like Shallow Waters and Digital Tears provide very little as an insight into the content of the original image or newly-created one. The original image is so obscured,it is possible that the work’s title is alluding to it. It is also hard to make out what component of “mass media” or “mass produced images” are being utilized since this is not only a broad subject but also two separate things. The images could be stills from movies or music videos, which are technically part of mass media but aren’t necessarily mass-produced. Or, they could be mass-produced images that we are all familiar with like the falling twin towers, Hurricane Katrina or a Super Bowl win. Quiballo states that he is attempting to create “new myths” but a myth is a complex story that would require more than non-descript hints of pixels and color. If he is creating “new myths,” it suggests that he considers the images he’s using as existing “myths” and not just mass media.

The process that Quiballo is using to achieve his images is interesting enough but there is too much inconsistency with its final execution. He could also benefit from narrowing down his focus with this work since it appears unclear to the visitor and comes across as being a generalization of buzz words that we hear to suggest subjects we are supposed to hold in contempt: media, mass media, and mass production. I want to know why he cares about what he is doing.